Gateway

Issue date: 4/29/08 Section: Features

Jerry Anderson [Click to enlarge]

Adam Miller [Click to enlarge]

Jerry Anderson

If there's one thing Jerry Anderson loves, it's being helpful. Anderson said that being a security guard allows him to help people the most.

"I like the contact with people. I'm a people person," he said.

Anderson said that to be a security guard is to be the "greatest ambassador," because guards will be one of the first people that students will meet on campus.

Before joining UNO's security force, Anderson worked as a guard for Mutual of Omaha for four and a half years. He joined UNO 14 months ago and joked that he would give his boss a "10-year plan" with UNO.

As a UNO guard, Anderson said the most memorable event was the bomb scare at the Arts and Sciences Hall.

"[Students] really made me feel good … they appreciate us doing a good job and being there for them," he said.

Anderson not only helps students every day, he also helps dependent seniors and Alzheimer's patients as a member of the Home Instead Senior Care service.

"Giving back in life is what it's all about," he said. Anderson said that he loves being a positive influence on people.

Anderson was never a UNO student, but majored in business while at the University of Texas at El Paso. Anderson also took business courses while on a three-and-a-half year tour in the Army.

Adam Miller

If you don't see Adam Miller in uniform on campus, it might be because he is off saving someone from a burning building. Not only does he patrol the campus as a UNO security guard, but Miller also volunteers as a firefighter.

Miller came to UNO after working for American Security for almost two years. He said that being a security guard is "more interactive."

Miller has been at UNO for the last four weeks and plans to remain while he returns to his studies this fall. Miller once studied criminal justice because he always wanted to be a police officer.

Miller said that the most memorable event of his career so far was when he "nicely" escorted a few homeless people off the premises where they had defecated and left graffiti on a business.

Another memorable moment for Miller was when he became supervisor at American Security and found himself supervising members of the staff that had been with the company for more than seven years.

Outside of work, Miller enjoys hunting, fishing, working on cars and four-wheeling.

Miller will attend UNO this fall, but he has not decided if he will continue to pursue criminal justice or if he will major in fire ecology instead.

"I like the fire department a lot, but I've wanted to be a cop since I was a kid," he said.

Miller said the time he spends as a guard would be great for the experience and his resume when he applies for a police force. Miller said that when he achieves either career goal, he plans to stay with the profession until he's forced to retire.

"They'll probably have to kick me out," he said.

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